Vasseur sees Hamilton struggle at Ferrari: 'So stupid to think that...

10:30, 18 Aug

byCas van de Kleut

Frederic Vasseur did not anticipate Lewis Hamilton having such a hard time at Ferrari. The Scuderia team boss now has an idea of what might be causing the challenging start for the seven-time world champion.

Hamilton's season began inconsistently. The Brit finished tenth in the season opener in Australia, but in China, he won the sprint race. After the Grand Prix, Hamilton was disqualified. Subsequently, he scored consistent points until the Grand Prix in Hungary, though he never finished higher than fourth place.

After qualifying in Hungary, Hamilton was not pleased with his own result. He was eliminated in Q2, while his teammate, Charles Leclerc, secured pole position. The driver, who has been racing for Ferrari since this season, called himself useless and suggested that Ferrari might be “better off replacing him.”

Lewis Hamilton during the press conference in Spa-Francorchamps

Vasseur knows the reason for struggling Hamilton

In talking with The Race, Vasseur explained why he thinks Hamilton is finding it difficult. He stated that the Brit had been in the same team for twenty years: “McLaren was Mercedes, and then he moved to Mercedes: an English team [based in Brackley], same engine guys, that same culture and so on."So he spent 2006 to 2024, 18 years, in this environment, and then he arrived at Ferrari. And we were stupidly expecting that he will have everything under control"

The Frenchman continued that there are other drivers who have switched teams more frequently. As an example, he cites Sainz, who has driven for five teams in ten years. “You have guys on the grid that, if you have a look on Carlos, for example, he did Toro Rosso, Renault, McLaren, us and Williams in eight years. He changed four times. He's used to dealing with this. Lewis was not the case.” says the team boss of Ferrari.

Vasseur continued: "Culturally speaking, there is a bigger difference between Ferrari and Mercedes than between Mercedes and McLaren. And this we underestimated, It took Lewis four or five races to be a bit more in control. And I would say that from Canada, Spain, UK, Austria, he was there. He was."

Vasseur then went on about the results of the weekends in Belgium and Hungary. According to the Frenchman, Hamilton drove very well during the race in Belgium, after a disappointing qualification. Also, the team boss of Ferrari stated that Leclerc was almost eliminated in Q2 in Hungary. Now, Ferrari is working on ensuring that Hamilton's problems are resolved.